


Dark Magic

by heyheyheyakaashi



Category: Shall We Date?: Wizardess Heart+
Genre: Angst, Dark Magic, M/M, Spoilers, but not graphic, just a lil bit, slightly OOC, some violence, spoilers for klaus and randy's routes, with a sort of happy ending?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-08
Updated: 2018-07-08
Packaged: 2019-06-07 07:16:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,262
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15213956
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heyheyheyakaashi/pseuds/heyheyheyakaashi
Summary: Dark magic can be ruthless and controlling. Serge Durandal learns this the hard way.





	Dark Magic

**Author's Note:**

> (just a little heads up: this contains spoilers for Randy and Klaus’ routes, as this does go into detail about their pasts. If you don’t want to be spoiled, I recommend you don’t read this until you’ve finished their routes.) This was pretty fun to write, I had a good time playing around with the various characters ~~and making them suffer~~. Also, on a side note, dark magic isn’t really talked about in depth throughout the WH routes, so I did make some things up for the sake of this story. Not everything discussed about dark magic in this fic is canon in the actual game.
> 
> Edit: check out these amazing fanarts/edits by [brainsbrawnandcommonsense ](https://brainsbrawnandcommonsense.tumblr.com/tagged/Also-shout-out-to-my-pin-for-being-very-RUDE.), [Nitia95](https://nitia95.tumblr.com/post/176702818197/dark-serge-and-multicolored-in-the-end-hes), and  
> [Gedanklune](https://gedanklune.tumblr.com/tagged/the-original-dark%21randy-is-from-a-fic-called-%27Dark-Magic%27-but-I-can%27t-find-the-fic-anywhere), all on tumblr! (how is everyone so damn talented wth) Go check their blogs out, and maybe drop in an ask or two!

The chalk in Klaus’ hand scraped at the blackboard as the prefect wrote down key notes for the students to make. He was about half way through his lecture on dark magic and forbidden practices in the wizarding world, and for once the students actually seemed interested.

“I get that dark magic is banned and all, but why? Isn’t it just a version of light magic that allows the user to do different things? Why is that so bad?” One student asked.

“Because, unlike light magic, dark magic seemingly has a mind of its own. With enough power, dark magic can grow and control its user, leading to catastrophe. As dark magic is much more powerful than light magic and can easily cause more harm, it is strictly prohibited in order to keep both magic users and the general public safe,” Klaus explained.

“Black magic... can control its user?” The student’s eyebrows knitted together with confusion.

“Indeed. If the wizard or wizardess has an immense amount of power, the dark magic can easily grow stronger and become out of control. There have been countless events in the past in which people have become overpowered by dark magic and have lost control, wreaking havoc and harming many people.” Klaus elaborated. The student’s eyes widened in shock.

“So... it possesses them?”

“In a way, yes.”

“But if people know that this can happen, then why do they try to use it in the first place?”

“Because some people are greedy and selfish – they use it to fulfil their own needs and desires and don’t care about the consequences. This costs them greatly, as dark magic is uncontrollable once it begins to get out of hand.”

The lecture went smoothly, with students asking a range of questions and clearly becoming invested in the topic. Klaus set an assignment for them all to do further research into people who have used dark magic in the past, certain that, for once, he would receive a full class’ worth of homework.

The bell rang, and the students flooded out of the classroom. The Emperor followed them out not long after, and headed back to the prefect’s office to get some work done.

~*~

A heavy sigh passed Serge’s lips as he anxiously bounced his leg under the desk. The desk was littered with various papers and books filled with his messy handwriting, some of which was barely comprehensible after he had written them in a fit of urgency and panic.

The prefect knotted his fingers in his hair and pulled in frustration, nothing he thought of seemed to be right; none of his ideas were good enough. His leg bouncing became more erratic, breathing became heavier, his fingers were twitching and anger and frustration was quickly building up inside him, like a pot of boiling water about to flow over the edge.

 _God dammit,_ if only he could just _get it right_.

Klaus walked through the door, a pile of books in hand, snapping Serge out of his self deprecating state. The blond prefect frowned.

“What are you doing?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Hm? Oh, nothing!” Serge smiled. “Just... y’know, prefect stuff.”

“You’re... actually doing your duties as a prefect?”

“Aw, come on Klaus, gimme more credit than that – I take my responsibilities as a prefect very seriously, I’ll have you know!”

“Mhm.” Klaus said nothing more, merely squinting his eyes at the other man as he made his way towards his own desk, placing his books down and pulling his glasses out of a drawer. Putting them on, he opened one of the books and began to plan for future lectures, hoping he could continue to cover similar topics to dark magic.

The two prefects both sat at their respective desks doing work as time passed quickly. Klaus was calm and quiet, making key notes on various topics and finding ways to integrate them into his lessons; Serge, on the other hand, was very rapidly becoming frustrated with himself again. His usual happy demeanour was gone, his cheerful expression replaced with a frown as he irritatedly tapped his pen against the wooden desk, willing his brain to think of a new, better idea.

“Dammit,” He muttered, leaning back in his chair and staring at the ceiling. Why was nothing he thought of good enough? Was he not trying hard enough? Was he just stupid? Was _he_ not good eno-

“Serge.” Klaus was watching him from his desk, his features knotted in a concerned frown. Serge had been acting strangely since he’d first walked into the prefect’s office, carrying a jittery, annoyed air about him as he frantically scribbled on various sheets of paper already filled with notes. He didn’t believe the pink haired man when he’d said he was doing prefect work; he’d seemed far too invested in whatever he was doing for it to be prefect related. But he hadn’t interfered, and had left Serge to carry on – but now he needed to step in, as he was beginning to concern the Emperor.

“Calm down. Your leg is going to hit the desk if you keep bouncing it so frantically. What are you getting yourself so worked up about?”

“I-It’s just...” Serge began, before sighing for what felt like the hundredth time in the past hour. “Nothing.”

“It’s clearly not nothing,” Klaus replied. “I’ve never seen you get so stressed over work before. What exactly are you doing, anyway?”

“Like I said, nothing.” Serge leaned back down to look at his scribbles once more, making no effort to actually pick up his pen again. He sat there silently, as if willing the pen to pick itself up and write a game changing idea that would solve everything all on its own.

“For god’s sake, Serge,” Klaus stood from his chair and walked around his desk, striding towards Serge’s. He stood in front and peered down, scanning over the paper that had gotten the pink haired prefect so worked up. Frowning, Klaus grabbed a sheet and began to read.

“Hey, wait,” Serge protested, “Don’t read tha-“

“What the hell is this?” Klaus slammed the paper down and pointed towards the writing scrawled in all directions.

“I-“

“Why are you trying to find a way to reverse petrification, Serge?” Klaus, of course, already knew the answer, but the gradually building rage inside him irrationalised his thoughts.

“You know why,” Serge sighed. “Randy’s been stone for six years now, and I’m desperate to find a way to bring him back...”

“And why do you think that you can go anywhere near him again? You petrified him, Serge; if you tried to do anything else to him you’ll most likely make the situation ten times worse. Don’t even think about going near him with your magic, you’ve destroyed his and many others’ lives as it is – including mine.”

“I know how close you were with Randy, Klaus, and that’s why I want to do something! I travelled the world looking for a cure and now I’m trying to put all of my knowledge together to help him in any way I can. I was close to him too, and I-“

“Don’t you dare,” Klaus growled, “ _Don’t you dare_ say you were close to him. You may have been friends, yes, but you were the one who caused his demise. You played a role in his... his _death_ , and to say that you were close to him is a disgusting thing to say.

“Randy was my best friend, he was my _closest_ friend, and then you, you went and killed him. _You’re a murderer, Serge Durandal_. And don’t you dare think that you can whip up a cure and everything can go back to normal, the way it was six years ago. Because it can’t. I’ve been working my ass off every day since the day you abandoned everything and left, I’ve tried and failed so many times to try and bring him back. What makes you think you can do any better?”

“I-“ Serge croaked, fighting back tears. “I just – I just wanted to try. I can’t just sit here and do nothing.”

“You might as well,” Klaus replied, glare as sharp as a knife. “Because nothing you can do will bring Randy back.”

Shakily exhaling, Serge gathered up all of his notes and fled from the office, tears pricking his eyes and blurring his sight. Every single word Klaus had spoken had been like a knife to the heart, every syllable pushing him more and more over the edge.

Klaus stared at the door, alone in the office, shocked at his own outburst. What the hell had caused that? He wasn’t usually so... _emotional_. Running a hand through his hair and heaving a sigh, he returned to his paperwork. He’d talk to Serge about all of this later. For now, they both needed some alone time.

~*~

Slamming open the door to his and Klaus’ dorm room, Serge threw his notes and books on his bed, startling Taffy, who had been sleeping in a small makeshift bed on Serge’s bedside table.

“Master?” The stuffed familiar tilted his head, beady eyes watching the pink haired wizard. Tears were streaming down Serge’s face as he sat down on his bed, head in hands.

“Fuck,” He muttered. “Dammit Taffy, what am I doing wrong?”

“M-Master..?” The bear hopped down onto the bed, cautiously standing near his master, who was currently in a state the familiar rarely saw him in. Eyes puffy and swollen, cheeks tear stained, hands frantically pulling at his hair in an attempt to keep himself grounded. Taffy only really ever saw his master like this when he came back from visiting the nearby forest filled with Carem flowers.

“I can’t do _anything_ right,” Serge dug his chewed fingernails into his scalp. “Randy’s gone, Klaus will never forgive me, all I ever seem to do is prance around and pretend to be happy, and I’m sick of it!” His voice grew louder, angrier. “I’m tired and fed up of pretending everything’s okay, Taffy! Because it isn’t! My only friends are gone, my grandmother is gone, I’m alone and I can’t do anything about it!”

The tears continued to flow from his bloodshot eyes, falling onto his uniform. He suddenly felt so constricted, like he was struggling to breath. Serge yanked at his tie, pulling it off and frustratedly throwing it across the room. The tie caught on the handle of his wardrobe, and Serge’s breath caught in the back of his throat as he watched it loosely hang from the wood.

“Maybe I can do something...” He muttered. He stood and walked towards the cupboard, opening the doors and crouching down. Reaching a hand right to the back, he came into contact with something and pulled it out. In his hands was a large, dusty tome, with a black hardback cover embellished with swirling intricate silver designs. It was a book he’d admittedly forgotten about, a book that he’d swiped from Azusa’s desk to read out of curiosity. Inside it he had found many dark magic spells and curses, and out of concern for his friend had decided to keep it to avoid Azusa getting himself into trouble. When he had moved into Klaus’ dorm room, he had hidden it at the back of the cupboard and forgotten about it.

Until now.

~*~

Klaus couldn’t concentrate. He found his own leg bouncing, the fingers of his free hand methodically tapping on the desk as he attempted to get some paperwork done. Even after countless cups of tea he was still restless and jittery, and his thoughts kept drifting back to a certain pink haired wizard, and their last conversation.

Guilt set heavily in the pit of his stomach. He hadn’t meant any of those words – only the ones about being close to Randy – he didn’t blame Serge for the incident, he didn’t hate him. Back when they were 18, back when the incident was still fresh in everyone’s mind, Klaus had yelled at Serge until his throat was dry and sore, he had screamed and cried over the loss of his dear friend. Serge was a scapegoat, someone who he could easily pin the blame on to make himself feel better. After being left to dwell on the matter for years of Serge’s absence, he had come to realise that he had never blamed Serge at all. He understood that it was all a huge mistake that the man was trying his hardest to undo. He had appreciated the effort that the pink haired wizard put into his research, but had never said so to his face.

And now he’d gone and crossed a line. Klaus was not unused to shouting and scolding, but he understood that he’d let his emotions get the better of him and taken it too far. Standing up from his desk and putting his glasses away, he left the office in search of Serge. For once, the Emperor was going to apologise.

~*~

“Master, me thinks this is a beary bad idea...” Taffy’s legs were shaking as he watched his master’s eyes light up at the sight of the various spells written on the old, frayed pages of the black book.

“It’s not, Taffy. It’s a great idea. This is going to work, I just know it.” His eyes scanned over the same lines he’d been reading over and over again for the last ten minutes. A spell that could strengthen one’s own power, a spell that could make him capable of reversing Randy’s petrification with one flick of his wand. He read them over and over, making sure they had absorbed into his mind. He needed to get this right. He needed to become more powerful. He needed to bring Randy back.

“Whatever happens, Taffy, don’t interfere. Okay?” Serge raised his eyebrows as he put the book down on the bed and stood in the middle of the room, summoning his wand.

“Um...” The bear hesitated, but faltered under his master’s determined gaze. “Yes, master...”

“Good.” Readying his wand and taking a deep breath, he began to chant the spell word for word as he had read in Azusa’s book, closing his eyes as he did so.

With each line he felt power flood through his veins. Every word sent a rush of adrenaline and something else that he couldn’t quite put his finger on through his body. He could physically feel his magic growing, enveloping him and filling him with strength. His breathing deepened and his heartbeat sped up, his wand sending out a steady flow of magic that wrapped around his body.

Taffy watched from the corner, body shaking and eyes tearing up as he watched his master become shrouded in a cloud of darkness. The lantern on the bedside table flickered and went out. The windows and door rattled in their frame. The entire building seemingly shook as the darkness grew, and grew, and grew, until neither Serge nor his magic was visible.

And then everything went silent.

~*~

Klaus sped through the halls, frantically looking for Serge. Where on earth could he be? He needed to find him as soon as possible, wanting to talk to him before he had the chance to go and do something stupid.

He rushed past the throngs of students in the hall, eyes scanning the crowds for a head of pink hair. As the blond prefect contemplated whether or not to check in the library, he felt something soft at his ankle. Pushing down his instinct to kick whatever it was away, he looked down, only to see Taffy looking up at him with tears in his eyes.

“Taffy?” Klaus frowned. The only times when Serge and his familiar were separated were when the stuffed bear was tired and wanted to stay in the dorms to sleep more while Serge worked in the prefect office. This wasn’t one of those times, however, and the tears welling up in the bear’s button eyes added to his growing concern. “Where’s your master?”

“M-Master...” Taffy began to cry like a small child, bawling as the tears soaked into his fabric. Klaus hurriedly scooped the familiar up and took him into a nearby empty classroom. Placing him on a desk and sitting in front of him, Klaus attempted to dry the bear’s tears with a handkerchief, but to no avail.

“What’s the matter, Taffy?” He asked, hoping to pry some information from him.

“M-Master, he... he...” Taffy spoke in between hiccups and sniffles. “Black book... dark m-magic...”

Klaus’ eyes widened, his frown tightened.

“Dark magic?” He asked, panic setting in. “Serge used dark magic?” The bear nodded, wiping his eyes.

“Big dark cloud... Me no see master anymore,” He shook from fear. “Beary scary...”

“Oh no, _oh no_ ,” Klaus felt his voice become unsteady, a contrast to his usual calm and collected tone. “Why the hell would he- where is he, Taffy? I need to know.”

“He went t-to the forest...” Taffy said before Klaus picked him up once more and sped out of the room, running right into Elias as he slammed the classroom door shut behind him.

“Brother? What’s gotten you in such a hu-“ The young Goldstein was cut off when Klaus thrust Taffy into his arms.

“Look after the bear. I need to go and find Serge.” Before Elias could even think of a reply, Klaus was already running down the hall.

“Okay...” Elias looked down at the stuffed familiar, wiping away a few tears with the pad of his thumb. “Guess you’re stuck with me for a while.”

~*~

The halls were a blur as Klaus ran down them, practically shoving students out of the way in his frantic rush to get out of the building. He ran out of the door and didn’t bother to follow the paths that surrounded the academy, instead opting to run on the grass and hope it wasn’t too muddy.

His mind was racing. Serge used dark magic. He wouldn’t. He couldn’t. How would he even know any dark magi- _Azusa_. He mentally cursed Azusa and all of his strange Hinomoto magic practices. If Serge were to know anything of dark magic, it would have been from Azusa, the bastard.

But that begs the question – why would Serge use dark magic in the first place? Klaus tried to shove down the thought that he could have caused the pink haired wizard to do such a thing, but the horrible thought lingered at the back of him mind anyway. If he was responsible for this, he’d never forgive himself.

He found himself slowing down near the entrance of the forest when he saw Professor Merkulova guiding many students as they all ran out of the forest.

“Professor, what’s going on?” Klaus asked, silently praying that the answer wasn’t what he thought it was.

“Dark magic,” The professor panted, “Black clouds everywhere. I was conducting a lesson in there, but it was interrupted when we realised someone was using dark magic, and my god, it’s powerful. Whatever you do, stay away from it. I’m going to find Headmaster Randolph as soon as my students are inside.”

Klaus looked past Merkulova and towards the forest entrance.

“I’m sorry, professor, I have to go in there,” He said, trying to hide the panic in the back of his throat. “I have to.”

“Klaus, wait-!“ The professor’s shout fell on deaf ears as Klaus ran straight into the forest without a single glance back. He had to find Serge. He had to find him, he had to apologise, he had to make sure he was okay.

As Klaus ran deeper into the forest, darkness began to surround him. Black clouds swirled around his head, fogging his vision. He sped forward anyways, hoping that he wouldn’t run into any trees that may be hiding in the darkness.

He felt something crunch underneath his heavy footsteps. Slowing down, he picked it up from the floor and looked at it closely. A dried Carem petal. He was close, hopefully. That was if Serge was actually in the place he hoped he would be.

He continued forward, the crunching underneath his feet gradually fading as he began to step on fresher petals, the baby blue colour still faintly visible, even through the dark clouds. The air momentarily became slightly lighter as Klaus entered an opening. It was filled with Carem flowers and blue petals.

This was the place where Randy died.

This was the place where Klaus was hoping and praying Serge would be.

He hesitated for a moment, stopping in his tracks to look around as best as he could in the darkness. His eyes adjusted to the dark, and something moved in his peripheral vision. He snapped his head in the direction of the movement, and for a short moment he saw a flash of pink.

“Serge!” He practically scrambled towards him still trying to catch his breath after his frantic sprint to the forest. “Serge, please listen to me – you need to stop this. Cancel the spell, stop all of this. You don’t realise how much damage you’ll cause if you keep going like this!” He yelled into the darkness.

No reply.

“Serge, god dammit!” He desperately reached out in front of him, and felt his hand come into contact with fabric. Clutching onto it, he pulled himself towards Serge. “Serge, please listen to me-“

“What do you want?” Serge growled, glaring at Klaus, whose breath caught in the back of his throat.

“Serge...” He took a step back. The pink hair, it was gone, replaced with a jet black. Gone was the usual cheerful grin, the cheeky glint in his eyes. His mouth was twisted into a snarl, his eyes filled with an empty obsidian colour. There were visible veins in his neck and hands, filled with darkness. His skin, sickly pale, was barely visible through the darkness that surrounded him.

“I said, _what do you want?_ ” Every word was laced with venom, dripping with disgust and anger. Klaus felt himself take another step back. This wasn’t Serge. This wasn’t _his_ Serge, the man who always smiled, the man who joked around, whose laugh brightened his day, even if he didn’t want to admit it. This wasn’t the man he knew.

No. This was a man taken over by dark magic. This was a man consumed by anger and guilt and sadness, a man pushed over the edge, a man who desperately turned to dark magic as a last resort.

Because of him.

This wouldn’t have happened if Klaus hadn’t yelled at him, hadn’t scolded him for simply trying to help. If Klaus hadn’t pushed him away, hadn’t treated him like a pathetic inconvenience, then they wouldn’t be here in the forest, both full of sadness and guilt.

“Pathetic,” Serge sneered. “The Emperor Klaus Goldstein, silenced by a mere glance.”

“Serge, please listen to me,” Klaus pleaded. “I know I treated you badly, I-“

A sharp laugh left his lips, sounding nothing like the usual cheerful chuckle that Klaus knew.

“The understatement of the century,” Those black eyes stared into his soul. “You treated me like shit, Klaus Goldstein. I felt pathetic, useless, stupid. Do you know what it feels like, to want to curl up and die? To feel so worthless and miserable all the time, but never be able to speak about it because the only person you want to confide in wouldn’t bat an eyelid if you broke down in front of them?

“Of course you don’t, _Emperor_ , because the great and powerful Klaus Goldstein doesn’t care about anyone but himself. You don’t care what happens to me, as long as it doesn’t inconvenience you in any way. Why do you think I used dark magic? Take a wild guess.”

“I-“

“Because of you.” A moment of silence passed before Serge laughed again, a smirk spreading across his lips. “Who’s the pathetic one now? Look at you, you look like you’re about to cry.”

Klaus bit the inside of his cheek and blinked his eyes. He felt a tear roll down his cheek. Followed by another. And another, until Klaus Goldstein was crying, collar becoming damp with salty tears.

“Serge please, please listen to me,” He begged, grabbing onto Serge’s lapels and looking him directly in the eyes. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I cannot adequately express how sorry I am, Serge. I don’t blame you for everything that happened with Randy. It was never your fault, but I was so grief stricken and you were the easiest person to take my anger out on.

“And... I treat you like shit, I know. And I’m sorry. I don’t mean to, don’t want to, but you’re always so cheerful and positive and it always angered me, how you could be so happy all the time. I know now that it was all an act, that deep down you were broken, you felt miserable and I didn’t help that in any way. If I’d have known, if only I’d have known how guilty you felt for everything, then I would have rethought the way I treated you.

“I know that doesn’t mean anything now, that I can’t take back everything I’ve said and done, but please know this – _I care about you, Serge_. I don’t know what I’d do without you, even if I hate to admit it. You brighten my day with your silly antics and jokes, you bring light to the darkest times. Of course I care about what happens to you, you... I... I love you, Serge.”

Silence hung heavily in the air.

Klaus was shocked with himself. He hadn’t meant to say such a thing, it seemed inappropriate for the situation, but... maybe it would help Serge snap out of it, to go back to normal. Hope rose in Klaus for a moment, until it was killed when Serge began to laugh. Long and loud, the cackles echoed through the forest as the man clutched his stomach.

“Oh, Klaus,” He sighed, a pitiful smile on his lips. “How romantic of you. But did you really think you could confess your love and everything would go back to normal? How cute.” He pulled Klaus’ hands from his lapels and shoved him out of the way, turning his back on the blond and directing his attention to the forest.

“All these Carem flowers,” He sighed. “Randy’s magic is still present...” He crouched and plucked a flower from the ground, inspecting it. The vibrant blue contrasted with his pale skin and black veins, practically screaming to be noticed.

“I’ll bring you back, Randy...” He murmured to the flower, looking it over one last time before throwing it to the ground and turning back to Klaus. “As soon as I deal with this sick bastard first.”

Klaus barely had any time to comprehend what was happening before the clouds of darkness that were swirling around Serge suddenly darted towards him, engulfing him. He fell to the ground, feeling restricted as he felt himself begin to suffocate. He gasped for air, only to have the cloud enter his lungs, filling his body with darkness. It flowed through his body, sending sharp pain through his every nerve. A scream tried to pass his lips, only to catch at the back of his throat. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he fought against the dark magic, struggling to stay conscious.

Serge watched from a few feet away, face lacking any emotion whilst watching Klaus struggle in the darkness.

~*~

Footsteps raced through the forest as Headmaster Randolph, Conrad Schuyler, and Professor Merkulova ran in search of the dark magic’s source. They could hear shouting not far off, and headed in the direction of it.

“I’ve never seen such powerful magic,” Schuyler panted as they sped through the clouds of darkness.

“I have,” Randolph replied. “And I’m hoping and praying that this hasn’t been caused by the person I’m thinking of.”

They reached a clearing, and attempted to look for any signs of movement in the darkness.

“There!” Merkulova, pointed to their left, where someone was standing, looking down at the ground. The three teachers cautiously moved closer, to find that the person was looking down at another black cloud, which moved and squirmed in an unusual manner.

Randolph looked at the person in the darkness, eyes saddening when he recognised them.

“Serge Durandal,” He sighed. “The only person I know capable of such power...”

Serge snapped his gaze to the three teachers, ignoring the writhing figure of Klaus.

“Headmaster Randolph. How nice to see you here.” He said, voice void of any emotion. He flicked his hands to the side, and Schuyler and Merkulova flew through the air, crashing into trees and slumping to the floor, unconscious.

“I sadly doubt that I will be able to talk you out of this situation,” The Headmaster glanced at the figure on the floor. “Who have you already attacked?”

“Only your prized pupil, sir,” Serge smirked. “A Mr Klaus Goldstein, who is currently occupied. My magic’s too strong, he won’t be able to fight it for much longer.”

“Let him go, Serge.”

“Why should I?”

“Because you’ll regret it if you don’t.” Serge began to howl with laughter, looking back down at Klaus as he struggled and writhed, only to begin laughing harder.

“That’s a funny one, Headmaster. But you’re wrong. I’ll take great joy in killing Klaus Goldstein. He’ll only get in the way of bringing Randy back to life.”

“Randy March...” Randolph felt a wave of nostalgia rush over him as he spoke that name for the first time in years. “So this is why you’ve used dark magic. To bring your friend back.”

“And get rid of anyone who tries to stop me.” Serge growled, power flowing through his veins as he prepared himself to attack again.

~*~

Klaus was close to losing consciousness. He could feel the darkness coursing through his body, filling him with horrible thoughts and feelings. He fought and he fought, struggling against the immense power. He had to get to Serge. He had to stop him. He could hear Headmaster Randolph’s voice, and wanted to scream at him to get away before it was too late. But the darkness choked him, stopping any words from coming out.

Instead he tried to move him arms, only to have every attempt end with them being clamped back against his arms. Frustration filled him as he tried over and over to move in any way, every try failing.

He was going to die.

Serge could die, or escape and wreak havoc on Gedonelune and the rest of the world with his tremendous power.

He could only lie here and wait for his demise.

How pathetic.

How useless.

Is this how he had made Serge feel all the time? No, no, no, he couldn’t have... he didn’t mean...

 _I’m sorry_ , He thought, uselessly hoping that his apology would somehow reach Serge. _I’m sorry, I’m so sorry for everything. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry-_

And in that moment of sheer panic, frustration and guilt, his arm broke free. Klaus desperately reached out into the darkness and grabbed onto something, hoping to pull himself out of the dark magic.

“What the-“ Serge looked down to find a hand tightly gripping his ankle, insistently pulling on it. He tried to shake it off, only to accidentally pull Klaus further out of his magic.

“Serge!” He pulled harder. Serge watched Klaus struggle, bending down and smiling pitifully.

“Look at you, trying to come and save me. How heroic.” He moved to pry Klaus’ hand from his ankle, only to be thrown through the air by a blast of magic. Serge crashed against a tree and quickly righted himself again, directing his harsh gaze towards Randolph, who had taken advantage of the distraction.

“You little-“ Serge sent masses of darkness to the Headmaster attempting to engulf him, but Randolph fought them all off.

“You may be powerful, Serge, but I’m the headmaster of this academy for a reason,” He said, casting a light spell at the darkness that tried to surround him. “You can’t defeat me. Back down, and we can work together to fix this.”  
“Hm, let me think that over.” He tilted his head in mock thought. “No.”

The air crackled with energy as the two prepared to fight, power building up inside them.

Serge struck first. A string of Latin flowed from his lips, causing darkness to shroud him. When the darkness dissipated, he was gone.

Klaus felt a hand on his neck, and he was pulled up into a standing position. He was facing Randolph, whose eyes showed traces of panic, despite his seemingly calm demeanour.

“Try to hurt me and he dies,” Serge said, breath tickling the back of Klaus neck as the grip around his throat tightened. Klaus could feel Serge’s chest against his back, he could practically feel the power and strength radiating off him.

“Serge, please don’t do this.” Randolph tried to reason with him, hoping they could leave the situation with no casualties. “You don’t want to do this.”

“What makes you think you know what I want?” Serge snapped. Klaus grasped at the black-veined hand around his neck as the grip tightened, making him feel light headed. “What I want is to bring my friend back and get rid of anyone who stands in my way, and that’s it. If you think I want anything else, then you’re wrong. I don’t care what happens to you, the professors, or Klaus. I _will_ get what I want, do you understand?”

Klaus took as deep a breath as he could, and swung his fist up into the air. It collided with Serge’s jaw, resulting in a sickening crack to reverberate through the air. Klaus was let go when Serge reached for his jaw in shock, allowing Klaus to rush over to Randolph’s side.

“We have to use magic against him, Klaus,” Randolph quietly spoke. “I know you don’t want to, but he’s too powerful for there to be another way out of this.” Klaus reluctantly nodded. He didn’t want to hurt Serge any more that he already had, but the Headmaster was right, there was no other way.

The two nodded before focusing all of their attention on their magic. They built it up inside of them before casting their wands in unison in the direction of Serge, who was still in shock. Chains of light flew from the tips of their wands, wrapping around Serge and restricting him.

An ear piercing shriek escaped Serge’s mouth as the light magic surrounded him. It burned as it tightened around his flesh, weakening him. It was all a blur, his vision becoming hazy as it filled with light. He felt himself fall to his knees and heard another deafening scream leave his lips.

Klaus and Randolph poured all of their energy into the magic, refusing to let Serge go on with this any longer. They watched him fall to his knees and begin to sob, screaming and writhing as he was engulfed with light.

Then their vision turned white, and all was silent.

~*~

When Klaus regained consciousness, he had to scrunch his eyes and wait for them to adjust to the sudden brightness. Sitting up, he found himself surrounded by Carem flowers. Then realisation hit him. The last thing he could remember was the brightness of his and Randolph’s magic, and Serge...

_Serge._

He scrambled to his feet, ignoring how his whole body protested; he ached all over and his muscles begged for rest. But he forced himself to stand and look around. To his right he could see Headmaster Randolph, Conrad Schuyler and Professor Merkulova on the floor, the latter two still slumped against trees.

To his left, he saw Serge lying on his side, facing away from him.

“Serge!” He frantically ran towards him, kneeling down in front of Serge.

His black hair was slowly fading, the bright pink beginning to show itself once again. Klaus held Serge’s face in his hand, the other hand down to hold one of Serge’s . His skin was still deathly pale and cold to the touch.

“Serge, I am so, so sorry...” He hung his head, tears falling from his eyes once more. He felt nothing but guilt and sorrow as he rested his head on Serge’s chest, his tears soaking the fabric of the other man’s blazer. “I didn’t mean for this to happen, I didn’t mean to hurt you. I’m so sorry for not showing you how much I care about you, because I do. Just... _please be okay..._ ”

“Klaus...” Serge muttered, frowning as he regained consciousness. His eyelids fluttered open, and Klaus looked up to find those beautiful bright eyes looking back at him once more.

“You’re okay,” Klaus murmured, caressing the side of Serge’s face in disbelief. Serge smiled.

“Debatable,” He replied, before falling into a coughing fit. Klaus sat him up and rested his head against his chest, stroking his back. He sighed into Serge’s hair, which had almost fully returned to its normal colour, and inhaled the sweet scent that the pink haired man always carried with him. Klaus found it comforting as he tightened his hold on Serge.

“I love you...” He whispered into the pink locks as another stray tear fell from his eye.

He’d talk to Serge about his feelings another day. But for now, he’d keep quiet, and take time to appreciate him just being by his side.

**Author's Note:**

> Heyoooo so this is the first fanfic I’ve written on ao3 that isn’t a drabble, so I hope it’s decent lol – feel free to leave any constructive criticism in the comments, it’d help me when I come to write more long fics. <3


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